Skimming aircraft landing sail



Dec. 20, 1932.

H. HEIN SKIMMING AIRCRAFT LANDING SAIL Filed April 4, 1932 Even/far.

Hermann /?z;/

Patented Dec. 20, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HERMANN HEIN, OI BREMEN, GERMANY SKIMMING AIRCRAFT LANDING SAIL Application filed April 4, 1932, Serial No.

The carrying capacity 'or upthrust of the aircraft landing sail described in former specification Serial No. 575,662 as mentioned therein is achieved by a skimming action.

7 The value of the upthrust in that case depends upon thesp-eed at which the sail is towed, upon the angle of incidenceof the sail to the water surface, and upon the breadth of the carrying part of the sail. Even an unstiffened length of sail cloth can skim to a certain extent, particularly when this action is supported by eddy free conducpart of the landing sail skimming upon the water is provided with stifiening slats, known per se, which extend over almost the whole breadth of the sail and are arranged at small spacing from another. The result of this arrangement of the slats is that the sail is depressed by the aircraft float in such a manner that its forward part, that is the part beneath the front plane of the float takes the form of this float plane. In this way the landing sail acts as regards its carrying capacity as a widened aircraft float.

An example is illustrated in the accompanying drawing. Figure 1 is a side view and Figure 2 a plan.

In the figures a is the aircraft float which is lying on the carrying end I) of the landing sail provided with slats 0. During towing the sail takes the position shown in Figure 1, that is the slats 0 lie against the bottom of the float so that the lower side of the sail presents itself to the water in an advantageous manner for producing a high value of upthrust. The spacing between the slats should only be so much, or their thickness must be such that the sail cloth upwardly pressed by the water does not contact with the plane, whereby the result is obtained that the sail forms a cylindrical surface of a section corresponding with the fioat contour and of 603,135, and in Germany April 10, 1931.

which the cross stiffening slats are generators.

The landing sail provided with the described stiffening slats in this way achieves a V carrying capacity which can be increased as desired byextending the slats in the breadth direction of the sail and increasing the speed of towing, for the contour of the whole system arises from the mere provision of the slats.

, What I claim is 1. A skimming aircraft landing sail comprising cross slats arranged on the top surface of the sail on that part skimming on the water, said slats extending over almost the entire breadth of the sail and being arranged at small distances apart.

2. A skimming aircraft landing sail comprising a plurality of cross slats arranged on the top surface of the sail on that part skimming on the water.

3. A skimming aircraft landing sail comprising a plurality of cross slats for the sail upon which the aircraft lands and slides.

' In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification. v

HERMANN HEIN. 

